Ultrasound imaging machines are a mainstay of modern medical practice. Ultrasound machines utilize ultrasonic waves, i.e. sonar, to scan a patient's body. The ultrasound machine produces images which are viewed by doctors in the diagnosis and care of patients. Ultrasound is particularly useful for viewing a foetus during prenatal care in a pregnancy. Ultrasound is also used to view blood-flow patterns in arteries.
In larger hospitals, the ultrasound machines are networked with a Picture Archive and Communications System (PACS). The PACS provides a central library for storing and retrieving ultrasound images. Typically, a hospital will have one PACS connected to several ultrasound stations spread throughout the hospital or at remote locations connected by a communication network. The images generated by the ultrasound stations are transferred to the PACS for storage and later retrieval and review. Because of the cost, PACS are mostly found in the larger metropolitan hospitals.
Although their use is widespread, ultrasound machines are expensive to purchase and the number of ultrasound machines in a hospital is limited. Larger hospitals are typically equipped with several ultrasound machines, while smaller hospitals are limited to one or two machines. With decreasing budgets hospitals are reluctant to upgrade or replace their ultrasound equipment and many hospitals continue to operate with older equipment. This means that many existing ultrasound machines in use are not compatible with the newer picture format standards, such as DICOM3 or DEFF. Because most newer PACS are based on DICOM3 or DEFF standards, this means that the older ultrasound machines currently in use are also incompatible and cannot be integrated into a networked ultrasound management system, e.g. several ultrasound machines networked with a PACS. For a smaller hospital having one or two ultrasound machines it is impractical to support a PACS, however, the additional functionality provided by PACS is still desirable.
With the widespread use of the Internet, and in particular, the World Wide Web, more and more users are relying on the Internet for communication and the transfer of information and data. Internet communication has become a very cost-effective standard for information distribution. Therefore, it is desirable to provide an interface to the Internet in order to exploit the communication capabilities of the Internet and the World Wide Web.
Accordingly, there is a need for image management system for use in conjunction with an ultrasound machine which provides the ultrasound machine with DICOM3 or DOFF compatibility. There is a need for an image management system providing the capability to interface with a PACS utilizing DICOM3 or DEFF standards. There is also a need for an image management system which provides an ultrasound machine with a local archive and retrieve facility, and the capability to access this information over the Internet.